The Foreign Office is planning to axe about 450 jobs from its embassies and consulates, including posts helping UK citizens and supporting diplomats, union leaders have said. Internal briefings to staff said the cuts were among measures to save up to £30m a year because of reductions in government spending, said the Public and Commercial Services union. Officials said the move was "short-sighted" particularly at a time when staff had played a key role in helping UK citizens in countries such as Egypt, Tunisia and Libya. The union urged the Foreign Office to rethink its plans, saying that diplomatic staff should be allowed to "do what they were employed to do" – work overseas on behalf of the UK. The general secretary, Mark Serwotka, said: "The government talks about increasing the UK's influence abroad, but these cuts will have the opposite effect."